Articles Posted inCivil Rights

Recently, the New Jersey Supreme Court ruled that private claims under the New Jersey Civil Rights Act (NJCRA) are limited to claims against individuals who were acting “under color” of state law. In other words, you can bring a private lawsuit under the NJCRA, but only against someone who was acting in his or her capacity as an employee or agent of the state or local government.

The case was brought by Maryann Cottrell, a resident of Glassboro, New Jersey. Ms. Cottrell apparently made negative comments about Zagami LLC at its public liquor license renewal hearing. Zagami is a company that owns a restaurant and bar in Glassboro. The company subsequently sued Cottrell, claiming her statements at the hearing were defamatory.

Zagami’s lawsuit eventually was dismissed by the Appellate Division. It found that since the liquor license renewal hearing was a “quasi-judicial” proceeding, Ms. Cottrell’s statements at it were protected by absolute immunity, meaning she could not be sued for anything she said at the hearing.

On March 8, 2013, the Third Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that Police Sergeant Valerie Montone can proceed with her civil rights case against the City of Jersey City, the Jersey City Police Department, Mayor Jerramiah Healy and retired Jersey City Police Chief Robert Troy. Montone claims she was passed her up for a promotion to lieutenant, in violation of her First Amendment right to political affiliation, because she supported Lou Manzo when he ran against Healy for mayor. She claims they decided not to promote any sergeants for three years so they would not have to promote her.

The First Amendment prohibits the state and local government from discriminating against employees based on which political candidates they support. As the Third Circuit explained, to prove this type of claim an employee has to prove (1) she worked for a public agency in a position that does not require political affiliation, (2) she engaged in conduct protected by the First Amendment, and (3) her employer took an adverse action against her, such as firing her, demoting her, or skipping her for a promotion, because of her constitutionally-protected conduct. Montone meets the first two requirements since her job as a sergeant for the Jersey City Police Department does not require any political affiliation, and her efforts supporting Manzo in the mayoral election is protected by the First Amendment. The primary issue on the appeal was whether there was enough evidence for a jury to find the defendants discriminated against her because she supported Mayor Healy’s opponent in the election.

The District Court dismissed Montone’s case, finding there was not enough evidence to prove discrimination. But in Montone v. City of Jersey City the Third Circuit disagreed. It found there was enough evidence for a jury to find discrimination in violation of the First Amendment, including the fact that:

Police Chief Troy made promotions to every other rank, but did not promote a single sergeant to lieutenant;

The number of lieutenants in the police department decreased from 56 to 30 over the three year period;

Jersey City had 66 authorized lieutenant positions, meaning it had 36 vacancies;

Mayor Healy and Chief Troy promoted their political supporters to other positions;

Jersey City has a history of political patronage including hiring employees who supported winning candidates;

Two other sergeants testified that Chief Troy told them they would not be promoted because they were below Montone on the promotion list and the mayor was not going to promote Montone;

The same two sergeants testified that Chief Troy indicated he did not have a problem with them because they did not come out against him during the election; and

Shortly after Chief Troy retired, he met with the new police chief before he decided not to promote Montone. Two days later, Jersey City promoted twelve other sergeants to lieutenant

In the same opinion, the Third Circuit ruled on a related case brought by eight other Jersey City police sergeants who were not promoted during the same three-year period. They claim they were the victims of Jersey City’s retaliation against Montone. I will discuss the fate of their case next week.

Earlier this year, in an unpublished opinion, the Third Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that a trial judge should not have dismissed a lawsuit claiming that his employer fired him in retaliation for speaking about a matter of public concern, in violation of First Amendment. The Third Circuit is a federal court that handles appeals from the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey.

The case, Beyer v. Duncannon Borough, involves Police Officer Eric Beyer’s claim that his employer, the Duncannon Borough, fired him in retaliation for expressing his opinion that the Borough should purchase higher velocity weapons for its police officers. Beyer posted comments on the internet and appeared on the Fox local news to express his opinion about purchasing the weapons. Mr. Beyer’s claims that Borough officials “openly attacked” him in response to his opinion, called his internet postings inappropriate, and eventually fired him.

Beyer sued, claiming the decision to fire him was retaliation in violation of his right to free speech under the First Amendment to the United States Constitution. The trial court dismissed his case, finding the facts did not support the conclusion that the Borough retaliated against him.

The Third Circuit disagreed, and reinstated Mr. Beyer’s case. First, it explained that a public employee’s speech is protected by the First Amendment if (1) he spoke as a citizen, rather than in his capacity as an employee, about a matter of public concern, and (2) the government did not have an adequate reason for treating him differently. On the first requirement, it found Mr. Beyer could have been speaking in his capacity as a citizen because he made his internet postings and gave his television interview during his off-duty hours, and used a pseudonym for his internet postings rather than making them as part of his job duties as a police officer. With respect to the second requirement, the court found Mr. Beyer’s opinion that the Police Department should have higher velocity weapons could relate to a matter of public concern because it had to do with the safety of the Police Force, which in turn relates to public safety. The Court also considered the fact that Mr. Beyer communicated his opinion publically, using the internet and TV news.

The Third Circuit then concluded that Mr. Beyer’s alleged facts supported the conclusion that his employer fired him in retaliation for his speech on an issue of public concern. It noted that employee can prove retaliation based on either (1) very close timing between the employee’s legally protected activity and the employer’s act of retaliation, or (2) a pattern of antagonism between the employee’s protected activity and the employer’s act of retaliation. It found that, based on Mr. Beyer’s allegations, it was plausible that the Borough had retaliated against him. It therefore ruled that he should have an opportunity to try to prove his claim, and reversed the trial court’s decision dismissing his case.

The New Jersey Civil Rights Act provides a remedy for many important civil rights. However, most people are unfamiliar with the New Jersey Civil Rights Act. This article answers some of the most frequently asked questions about the New Jersey Civil Rights Act.

Q. What is the New Jersey Civil Rights Act?

A. The New Jersey Civil Rights Act was passed in 2004. It creates remedies for violations of certain provisions of the New Jersey Constitution, the United States Constitution, and other New Jersey laws.

A description of the section methodology for SuperLawyers and Martindale-Hubbell can be found by clicking on the links. No aspect of this advertisement has been approved by the Supreme Court of New Jersey.

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